Love is Not a Victory March
by Starsabove0oru
Summary: Naruto and Sasuke spend the day together, just like they always do. But something is lurking about in the darkness. What happens when peace gives way to chaos? Is there a fine line between what we see and what actually is? Dark AU, SasuNaru.


**Well lol let's see… how did this particular one-shot come about? I heard this song on my friend's iPod on the way to Shady Maple. My friends & I go there every year during finals week. So yea this song "Hallelujah" came on and whenever I hear it, it reminds me of Shrek. It's such a sad, but beautiful song. The title of this one-shot comes from one of its lines.**

**I started writing this tonight, because it was also the first time I had seen my Dad in months. To put it lightly, we don't have the best relationship. I think a lot of people can relate to having an asshole and/or absent father. So seeing him didn't exactly put me in the best mood. So after he left I was at my computer, looking at my last one-shot, **_**Osaka Sun**_**, when I started thinking of the song mentioned above and inspiration struck. So here you go. I actually wrote this all in one night, so I'm proud of myself.  
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**P.s. I also watched Kizuna and I have to say, I liked it. I was kind of annoyed that there wasn't more Sasuke/Naruto interaction, but I suppose I'm asking for too much lol. The last scene where Sasuke recalls Naruto's words almost brought tears to my eyes. Dammit the two of them belong together! I think at this point if Naruto ended up with anyone else there would be a universal protest. But that's just my opinion. **

**Summary: Naruto and Sasuke spend the day together, just like they always do. But something is lurking about in the darkness. What happens when peace gives way to chaos? Is there a fine line between what we _see_ and what actually _is_? Or do we define our own reality?  
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** Warning: The ending is somewhat obscure. This is one of my darker one-shots. For those of you who have heard the song, it sort of complements the plot. Rated teen: violence, cursing, angst, etc. AU, SasuNaru. I don't own Naruto or the song "Hallelujah". If you find any mistakes, let me know please! **

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Love is Not a Victory March

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Uzumaki Naruto was starving. He wanted some ramen and he wanted it now! He had been training with Uchiha Sasuke for hours and he was all sweaty and thirsty and hungry and tired. Well not really tired physically, but tired of fighting. He wanted to do something else. It was a bright, sunny day and Team 7 had just returned from a mission a few days ago. So rest and relaxation sounded good… but of course the teme wanted to train. So in the morning, the two of them headed out to the vast forests that surrounded Konoha.

The blonde was lying on the grass, chest heaving up and down, listening to the calming rhythm of the nearby stream. How he wanted to plunge himself into that refreshing water! The raven was on the other side of the stream, still training. Despite the fact that he had less stamina than Naruto, Sasuke _always_ had to finish last. He was the one who determined when they got to go back to the village. He was such a stuck-up control freak!

Naruto snorted to himself and sat up, stealing a glance at the Uchiha. "Teme, are you done yet? I'm hungry!" He scratched his nose nervously at the dark look Sasuke gave him. "What? It's just a question! And I am hungry!"

"Not all of us are slackers." Sasuke drew a couple shuriken and tossed them rapidly into a nearby tree.

"Now, Sasuke, what did that tree ever do to you?" Naruto stood up and put his hands on his hips. "You can stay here all day, I don't care. I'm leaving."

"You say that every day. You never leave without me." Sasuke finally stopped moving and crossed his arms over his chest arrogantly. That bastard knew it. He was smart. He always had been. And he knew the blonde. Despite being so unpredictable, somehow Sasuke _knew_ him.

"Aw come on!!! Please, teme!!!! I did really well on our last mission! I was so good, I was golden. You saw it! Now let's go! I'll even pay for dinner! Please!!!!!!!!!" Naruto whined pleadingly. He always had to resort to paying for the meal. Sasuke was rich, but he was a stingy bastard. He really was.

Sasuke leapt in the air, practically flew over the stream, and landed right in front of Naruto. The Uchiha stared deeply into Naruto's blue eyes and the latter prayed that he was changing his mind. "Fine, whatever… but you're paying."

"Yes!!!!!" Naruto threw a fist in the air excitedly. "Ramen! Ramen! Ramen!"

"Shut it, dobe!" Sasuke smacked the blonde in the back of the head. "Go buy the damn food and bring it back to the compound." It was their routine. Sasuke wanted to avoid all the fan girls, so Naruto would buy the food and race back to the Uchiha compound. They would eat in comfortable silence. It was always kinda gloomy in Sasuke's home. Sometimes they would eat in Naruto's messy apartment instead.

The unlikely duo began walking back towards Konoha. Once back inside the city gates, they would part ways and meet up in approximately twenty minutes. Sasuke would stick to the shadows and the alleys, avoiding villagers at all costs. He was so antisocial it was ridiculous. A cocky, but reclusive jerk, which was kind of odd, because most arrogant bastards flourished under attention, but Sasuke didn't like attention at all. He liked to be left alone. Well… he did enjoy Naruto's company, but he never admitted it. Naruto didn't mind. He knew Sasuke just as well as Sasuke knew him. They were connected; they had a special bond.

"See you in a bit teme!" Naruto dashed away in the direction of Ichiraku Ramen. Sasuke didn't even bother to respond and instead, snuck off towards his home. The blonde laughed to himself, but froze as something crossed the corner of his eye. As soon as he turned his head, it was gone. "Well that's odd…" It looked like a fake, black rat. But it couldn't have been. He was just seeing things.

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The kitchen was so cold and eerie. Even as Naruto shoveled ramen into his mouth, at the back of his mind, he couldn't help but think to himself: _A family used to eat three meals a day here. Sasuke, Itachi, and their parents used to eat here._

He thought of a kind, smiling Mother cooking the day away. Patting Sasuke on the head and ushering him away from the food because it wasn't time to eat yet. She would smile innocently at Itachi whenever he got back from training and ask him how his day was going. But she would reserve her brightest smile for her husband, who rarely smiled at all. But his eyes would light up whenever he saw her. To other people, it wasn't even noticeable. But to her… it meant the world.

Just thinking about it made Naruto want to cry. He wanted a real family. He wished he knew his parents. He wished he had a sibling to play with and learn with and grow up with. The blonde looked across the table to where Sasuke was silently eating his food. But at least he had Sasuke, his most precious person in the whole world. And he was always there, by his side. Sasuke would never leave him.

"What are you thinking about dobe?" Sasuke raised an eyebrow at the blonde.

"Heh, heh, nothing." Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "Just thinking about our next mission. I wonder where Kakashi-sensei is and what he's doing… probably reading some more porn. And Sakura-chan… if she knew that we were here without her, she'd be so jealous!"

"She's always working at the hospital anyway. She wouldn't have the time." Sasuke answered simply, picking up his chopsticks.

"Yeah… I guess so. It's been a while since we've all hung out." Naruto wondered out loud. "I'll bet she's starting to miss you."

"I don't miss her." Sasuke replied immediately. It was true. Sasuke was a man of few words. But anyone could tell that he didn't like girls. Naruto was fine with that. He liked Sasuke. So it worked… not that they ever talked about it. For some reason, the subject had never come up. Naruto didn't want to be the first to talk about it… and Sasuke never mentioned it. So it was always something that lingered in the background.

Naruto rapidly finished his third bowl of ramen. He burped loudly. "Aaah… so good! It gets me every time!!" He turned to Sasuke, blue eyes sparkling happily.

"Hn." Sasuke stood up and grabbed all the dishes. He walked over to the sink and began to wash the dishes. Naruto never offered; it was one less thing he had to do. And besides, _HE_ was the one who always paid for the food. So the blonde sat there and watched the raven clean up the kitchen. It had gotten quite dusty. The Uchiha had been slacking lately; usually the entire house was spotless.

"What do you wanna do now?" Naruto paused for a moment and then made a face. "Besides train teme."

"If you don't feel like training, then there's nothing left to do." Sasuke uttered dryly, wiping his hands with a cloth that was next to the sink.

"Aw, come on, teme! Let's go to the Hokage Monument and watch the sun set!" Naruto jumped up excitedly, eyes brimming with exhilaration. Sasuke fixed him with one look. The blonde's face fell immediately. "We always do what _you_ want… why can't we do what _I_ want?" Neither of them wanted to answer the question… because they both knew the answer. They both knew it wasn't right.

"Usuratonkachi." Sasuke rolled his eyes. "If you really want to watch the damn sun, let's go. I don't see the point. It looks the same every day."

"I know…" Naruto smiled sadly. "But it looks different to me… when you're by my side." _You'll never know how much you mean to me…_

"You're a fool." The Uchiha snorted and walked out of the kitchen. Naruto stared at his back wistfully, wondering why he was feeling sadder than usual. It was nothing… nothing was wrong. It was a good day! Naruto brushed off his feelings and ran after the raven, who was strolling down the hallway. The blonde caught up with Sasuke and whistled joyfully, slinging an arm around the raven's neck.

"Why don't we go sit on Tsunade-baachan's head?" Naruto grinned widely, but a confused look overtook his expression at the frown on Sasuke's face. "What's wrong?"

Sasuke pointed to a particular spot on the ground. Naruto stared at it and noticed that it was darker than the rest of the floor. "It was a rat." The Uchiha said simply, giving Naruto a meaningful look. Naruto leapt forward towards the spot and wiped it with his finger. He felt the texture of it and froze.

"Ink." Naruto gulped, fear turning his blood ice cold. "Let's hurry up, Sasuke!" And with that, the two of them ran off towards the mountains.

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The sky was a tumultuous mixture of pink, orange, purple, and red. Naruto and Sasuke were sitting on the stony model of Tsunade's head, looking at the horizon and Konoha. "It's beautiful, isn't it, teme?" Naruto leaned back on his hands, head tilted up to the sky.

**Well, I heard there was a secret chord**

"Hn." Sasuke answered automatically. "They're going to find us soon."

**That David played and it pleased the Lord**

"No they're not." Naruto laughed nervously. He was ignoring all the signs. They both knew it. "As if they could catch us! We can do anything together! Me and you, against the world! We'll stop Orochimaru and Akatsuki and the Elders and Danzo and-"

**But you don't really care for music, do you?**

"Shut it, dobe." Sasuke tossed Naruto a rare smile, a smile that made Naruto's heart melt. The raven held out his hand and the blonde grasped it instantly. "You'll be okay."

**Well it goes like this: the fourth, the fifth**

_No, no… __we'll__ be okay. We'll be okay._ Naruto repeated to himself, squeezing Sasuke's hand as tenderly as he could. "Let's look at the sun. It's so orange, right?"

**The minor fall and the major lift**

"Your favorite color." Sasuke snorted, his mouth forming a familiar smirk. He knew Naruto didn't want to talk about it anymore. He knew Naruto so well, so well it almost made Naruto sick. They were made for each other, they were. Even though Sasuke still wouldn't admit it. He'd probably never admit it, but that was okay. As long as Naruto had Sasuke, nothing else mattered.

**The baffled king composing Hallelujah**

The two of them sat outside, basking in the dying sunlight. Their hands were still linked. Occasionally, Naruto would squeeze Sasuke's hand and the latter would sometimes reciprocate. But of course, Naruto could only stay silent for so long. "Hey, teme, let's play a game!" The blue-eyed beauty exclaimed out of nowhere.

**Hallelujah, Hallelujah**

"Are you kidding me?" Sasuke turned to glare at Naruto, yanking his hand from the blonde. "Why the hell would I want to do that?"

**Hallelujah, Hallelujah**

"Well, what else is there to do out here?" Naruto pouted, crossing his arms over his chest. _He's so stubborn! Stupid teme!_ But he loved fighting with the bastard. It was better than nothing at all.

**Well, your faith was strong but you needed proof**

"Well, whose idea was it to come out here in the first place?" Sasuke mocked Naruto, dark eyes narrowed.

**You saw her bathing on the roof**

"Grr… you owe me!" Naruto pointed at Sasuke accusingly.

**Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you**

"For what?" Sasuke snapped back. "For dragging me out here to stare at the sun like an idiot?!?"

**She tied you to her kitchen chair**

"For sticking a Chidori through my body and running off to Orochimaru!" Naruto screamed back uncontrollably. He covered his mouth in shock as Sasuke stood up and turned around. "I-I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, I didn't mean it."

**She broke your throne and she cut your hair**

"It always comes back to this. You can't forgive me." Sasuke uttered, mostly to himself. Naruto felt tears running down his cheeks.

**And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah**

"No, no it's not that." Naruto protested, standing up. "Please, Sasuke, look at me." Sasuke reluctantly turned around and looked directly into Naruto's eyes. There was so much pain in Sasuke's eyes… and Naruto knew that his own eyes held the same pain. "I love you. I will always love you. But you broke me; you broke me when you left. I can't fix myself without your help. I need you, I need you with me. I need you with me always."

**Hallelujah, Hallelujah**

"As long as the Fates allow it, I will _always_ be with you." Sasuke held a tentative hand out and gently caressed the blonde's scarred, but soft cheek.

**Hallelujah, Hallelujah**

"Sasuke!" Naruto croaked out, capturing the boy in a bone-crushing hug. He felt Sasuke embrace him and melted into the raven's arms. Everything was right again. Maybe they would go to bed early tonight. Naruto smiled and closed his eyes. Sasuke began rubbing his back and that always made him sleepy. It had been quite an exhausting day. They would go to sleep and dream of better days, of trivial fights and races and-

**Baby I've been here before**

Naruto heard a nearby rustle and his eyes shot open. Out of nowhere, a dozen shuriken were flying in the air towards Sasuke. "NOOOO!!!!" Naruto shrieked, but it was too late. The weapons smashed into the raven's back. "No!!" He heard the inescapable pop and saw the puff of smoke fading into the atmosphere. "No…" The blonde dropped to his knees, tears streaming down his face. "Sasuke…"

**I've seen this room and I've walked this floor**

"Naruto-kun, how long have you been indulging in this fantasy?" Sai descended to the ground, landing in a crouching position. He studied Naruto's broken face closely. "There is no doubt in my mind that this practice is unhealthy. Uchiha Sasuke is gone, you know this."

**You know, I used to live alone before I knew you**

"NO!!!! No, he's not gone!" Naruto screamed at Sai, standing up furiously. He wiped his tears away. "You killed him! You killed Sasuke!!!"

**I've seen your flag on the marble arch**

"That was a Shadow Clone. That wasn't the real Sasuke." Sai stood up as well.

**And love is not a victory march**

"Shut up!!!!!!!!!!!!" Naruto screeched, covering his ears. Sai was lying. He was a big fat fucking liar. What did Sai know? He didn't even have any emotions! "You killed Sasuke! You're going to pay!!!!" The blonde ran at Sai, tears still falling from his eyes. He swiped at Sai, who was able to dodge his every attack. He was being messy, he knew that. But he couldn't help himself. He wanted Sasuke back. How dare Sai kill Sasuke? How dare Sai take Sasuke away from him?

**It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah**

"Sai, what are you doing?!?" Naruto froze upon hearing a familiar yell. He turned around, only to see Sakura standing on the rock near them. "You were supposed to let us know when you found him!"

**Hallelujah, Hallelujah**

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto ran over to her joyously. She would help him. "Sasuke was here! He's here! We spent the whole day together!" Sakura smiled sadly at him, her green eyes holding some kind of emotion that almost scared him. "But Sai hurt him and I don't know where-"

**Hallelujah, Hallelujah**

"Naruto." Sakura shook her head, tears forming in her eyes. "Enough, please, stop. No more." The pink-haired girl held out a hand. She just wanted to hold Naruto and wish him better. But she couldn't help him unless he faced the facts. And the truth was, Sasuke was gone. He had been gone for years.

**Well there was a time when you let me know**

Naruto drew back from Sakura. "What do you mean 'stop'? Why should I stop? Doesn't Sasuke mean anything to you?!?" He found himself becoming hysterical again.

**What's really going on below**

"Naruto, it's time to go." Naruto whirled around, only to see Kakashi-sensei standing there. Why was everyone here? Why was Team 7 here? Well, Team 7 minus Sasuke anyway. "You need to come with us."

**But now you never show that to me, do you?**

"Why? Where are we going? Are we going on a mission?" Naruto cocked his head to one side. He ran over to his sensei unquestioningly.

**But remember when I moved in you**

"You are. You're going on a solo mission." Kakashi put his arm around Naruto's shoulders. The blonde rested his head on the older man's shoulder. He was so tired, so very tired. But he was always ready for a new mission!

**And the holy dove was moving too**

"Really? What's my mission?" Naruto smiled happily.

**And every breath we drew was Hallelujah**

"To get better." Kakashi answered enigmatically. And with that, Naruto's world went black.

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**Hallelujah, Hallelujah**

Uzumaki Naruto woke up in a world of white. It was always white where he was now. He wasn't allowed to make Shadow Clones anymore. He had to stay in this white world until he was better. The walls were white, the floor was white, the beds were white, the sheets were white, and his hospital gown was white. At least the food wasn't white. And because the nurses liked him, his food was always tasty.

**Hallelujah, Hallelujah**

He always had plenty of visitors. Sakura-chan and Kakashi-sensei came to see him the most. Sai never came and Naruto was happy, because he didn't like Sai. He looked too much like Sasuke. Sai wasn't worth Naruto's attention. Sometimes, Kiba would come to see him and he would bring Akamaru. Akamaru would lick his face and everyone in the room would laugh. But lately, Kiba hadn't been around. Maybe he was on a mission.

**Maybe there is a God above**

It was almost time for the nurses to bring him breakfast. He couldn't wait. Usually Ino brought him breakfast. Then she would tell him stories about Choji, because they were dating now. Naruto would listen and give her advice when he could. On his good days, Ino would sneak him some candy in the afternoon. He was going to be good today, because he definitely wanted some candy.

**But all I've ever learned from love**

The hospital was always so lively. There was never a dull moment. There was always some gossip or a story or some scandal. But for some reason, this morning, it was oddly silent. Usually, there were doctors and nurses and families rushing about. But this morning, nothing. It was slightly creepy. Naruto wondered if there was some kind of holiday he didn't know about. That would explain it. Maybe everyone was outside.

**Was how to shoot somebody who outdrew you**

The blonde wished someone would come into his room. He was so lonely inside his bed. He stared wistfully out of his window. Sunlight shone through it, illuminating the room. But the room was so pure, unlike its inhabitant. Naruto traced his scarred cheeks.

**And it's not a cry that you hear at night**

"I had a nightmare last night." Naruto said out loud to no one. The silence was creeping him out even more. It wasn't supposed to be quiet in a hospital. Where was everyone? But there had to be some logical explanation for it. So he would talk to himself and wait for his breakfast.

**It's not somebody who's seen the light**

"I had a dream that there was a monster here in Konoha. And it killed a whole bunch of villagers. I still remember all the screams… and the blood. It scared me so much that I woke up in the middle of the night. And I could still hear screams in my head. It took me a while to block out the screams and go back to bed. But I know that it was just a dream, just a dream, just a…" The blonde broke off as he heard footsteps. Finally! Someone was coming to see him. He was so excited; he didn't know what to do with himself. The footsteps stopped and Naruto's heart leapt. Who was it?

**It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah**

"Dobe." Naruto sat up straight at once, a grin overtaking his features. He knew that deep, conceited voice. Sasuke was back. He was standing right there, in the doorway. Was that blood on his cheek? No, it must've been the way the light was hitting his face…

**Hallelujah, Hallelujah**

"Teme!" Naruto cried out happily, his eyes sparkling for the first time in forever. And all was right in his world.

**Hallelujah, Hallelujah

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**THE END**

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**And that's that. Thanks so much for reading!! Let me know what you thought of it! I'll be out of school for the summer starting Thursday, so I'll probably update one of my other stories next week. Until then, take care! **


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